JP2894896B2 - Equipment for removing liquids - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

The present invention relates to beer, soft drinks,
The present invention relates to an apparatus for removing liquid from containers for products sold in cans and bottles such as foodstuffs. The invention relates in particular to an apparatus for removing water from the area to be marked immediately before the marking operation.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This process, commonly referred to in the art as dewatering, is commonly used in ink jet coders, such as ink jet coders, which print information on bottles or cans that pass through an ink jet print head during a bottle or can process. It is adopted to enable the use of various marking devices. Such a marking operation generally includes a date code, lot information, and other important information used for tracking a product for various purposes on the product.

[0003] The present invention is particularly applicable to the beverage industry where a high-speed filling device fills a can or bottle with a cooled beverage such as beer or soda. Immediately after the filling operation, a capping and labeling operation is performed, followed by a marking operation to identify the production date and / or production code.
Proper coding is an important requirement when tracking products back to a particular assembly line or batch. It is difficult to make a completely accurate marking of a bottle or can, mainly because of the water droplets that form outside the container after filling with the cooling liquid. Another problem stems from the soap-based lubricants used on product conveyors. If these liquids are not removed from the area of the container to be coded, ink from an ink jet printer or similar drop marking device may not adhere well to the container.

[0004] Current efforts to solve this problem include the use of an air manifold located in close proximity to the inkjet printhead. Generally, such manifolds consist of a closed section of pipe connected to an air supply. A plurality of fine holes are provided along the length of the pipe. Air passes through each hole and is poured into the bottle or can, attempting to blow off unwanted liquid. Such conventional technology uses air more than necessary by design,
It is quite noisy and cannot produce the clean, dry areas required for reliable marking of containers.

[0005] Another problem with prior art devices is the properties of air blast. High pressure air can prevent placement and sticking of labels on marked containers if not correctly positioned. In particular, labels are often applied to the front and back of the container, and the aqueous adhesive used requires a certain amount of time to solidify. Air blasting for the purpose of dehydration may peel or shift these labels.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a dewatering device that effectively removes moisture from the area of a container that is conveyed and marked on a high speed beverage filling conveyor.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a dewatering apparatus which can dewater only a region to be marked and can be positioned so as not to hinder the fixation of a label just applied to a container.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus which employs at least one air knife to accurately direct air to a container to be marked and to present a clean and dry surface to the marking device. is there.

[0009] These and other objects of the invention will become apparent from the remainder of the specification.

[0010]

Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a typical bottle conveyor suitable for use with the present invention. As is well known to those skilled in the art, each bottle is conveyed at high speed on the conveyor in the direction of the arrow and passes through a unit that fills with liquid and provides a cap or other sealing device. Next, after the labeling mechanism has applied one or more labels, the bottle moves to a marking section where the desired date and / or batch coding information is provided. As schematically shown in FIG. 1, the labeling operation is performed upstream of the inkjet marking operation. If a back labeler is used to apply a label to the back of each bottle, the two operations are separated from each other by the angle shown as "dwell" on the drawing.

Following labeling and marking in the ink jet section, generally designated 10, the bottle is transported on a conveyor to a final location where it is packaged for shipping.

Referring to FIG. 2, the ink jet unit 10
Is shown. In a typical marking operation, each bottle 12 passes through an inkjet printhead 14 arranged to print coding information at a desired location on the bottle.

As can be seen in the side view of FIG. 3, the printhead 14 is often located about one-third of the bottom of the bottle and about 0.48 cm from the surface of the bottle. Also, as shown in FIG. 3, it is common and desirable to provide coding information on the back of the bottle opposite the front label.

In order to adjust the position of the print head, a print head holder, which is provided with a horizontal adjustment mechanism 18 and a vertical adjustment mechanism 20 and is generally designated by reference numeral 16, is mounted.
Using these adjustment mechanisms, the print head can be positioned at a desired vertical height with respect to the bottle being transported mounted on the bottle pad 19 which is a part of the high-speed label attaching mechanism. it can. Further, the distance between the bottle and the printhead can be adjusted by the horizontal adjustment mechanism 18. The printhead holder 16 is fixed to the conveyor system by being pinched or attached to a rail 20 (FIG. 2) that is part of a labeling mechanism.

In accordance with the present invention, an air knife assembly comprising at least one, and preferably two or more air knives is used to dewater or dry the bottle surface to be marked prior to coding by printhead 14. As used herein, the term air knife refers to a linear array of fine openings connected to a common manifold that supplies air. This produces a very fine strip of high-pressure air from the output of each knife.
As described below, by carefully positioning the thin strip of air with respect to pitch, roll, and yaw angles,
Ensure that the strip hits the bottle exactly as each bottle passes in front of the knife, so that the marked area can be dewatered. On the other hand, for example, the other part of the bottle with the adhesive label that has not yet set is relatively undisturbed. Utilizing a linear array of fine nozzles to create a thin strip of high pressure air, and by carefully positioning each knife, the lubricant, including water and soap, is sheared down and away from the bottle, coding A clean part for working can be formed.

Air knives for use with the present invention are commercially available. For example, such a nozzle is manufactured and sold by Lecler as nozzle model number 600.130. Such nozzles are commercially available under the Fispa Blast trade name and consist of low noise level multi-groove flat spray nozzles. This nozzle employs a laminar air flow design. The number of nozzle openings connected to the manifold is typically about 16, with each opening having a diameter of about 1 millimeter and spaced about 0.32 millimeters from each other. FIG.
6a and 6b show the general shape of this device, with the air being supplied by connecting a hose to the end 80. FIG. Air is ejected from the air knife through each of the openings in a linear array designated by reference numeral 82.

Referring again to FIGS. 2 and 3, each air knife is secured to rail 20 by brackets 22 and 24 or any similar fixture. Bracket 22
May be part of the printhead holder assembly 16 connected to the rail 20 as described above. If more than one air knife is required, a second bracket assembly 24 may also be provided fixed to the rail 20. An air knife, generally designated 26, is located upstream of the printhead 14 to prepare the bottles before each bottle reaches the printhead. Depending on the line speed and the number of code characters to be marked, ie the size of the area to be dewatered, one or more air knives are required. For most tasks, two air knives are used. A second pair of air knives is typically used during wet summer installations or during summer when humidity increases.

In order to secure an optimal marking function,
It is necessary to position the air knife with respect to the bottle to be dewatered within the empirically determined critical ranges of pitch, roll and yaw angles. The precise positioning of the air knife is shown in FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C.

Referring to FIG. 4A, the bottle 12
Is a plan view of a conveyor line showing a bottle pad 19 having It has been found that the air knife should be positioned between 59 and 69 degrees with respect to the longitudinal axis 30 of the conveyor. Thus, the air knife is pointing upstream of its position, so that its radiant air hits the bottle before it reaches the air knife.

Referring to FIG. 4C, a second critical angle is shown. In this end view, the air knife is positioned at a descent angle between 20 and 30 degrees from the horizontal.
4A and 4C, it will be appreciated that the air knife should be pointing upstream by about 64 degrees and pointing down between 20 and 30 degrees relative to the horizontal.

Referring to FIG. 4B, the final angular position is shown. FIG. 4B is a side view, showing that the linear array of openings forming the nozzle should be rotated between 47 and 57 degrees from the position where the openings are aligned vertically. The direction of this rotation is, as shown in FIG.
It is counterclockwise when viewed toward the surface of the bottle 12 along the axis of rotation. By taking this position, water and lubricant can be sheared down on the bottle surface to ensure a clean area where marking is possible.

The net effect of the three corners illustrated and described with respect to FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C is to position the linear array so that air strikes the upper area to be marked and urges the water downward. That is. As the bottle is moving in the direction of the air knife, the applied air pressure gradually increases, pushing the liquid downward and away from the bottle. This configuration allows air and / or liquid to move upwards,
It is possible to prevent entry into the area used for the rear label. When water and / or liquid reaches the label area,
If the adhesive used to fix the label is not yet solidified, the label may be moved from its original location. The excellent performance of the dewatering mechanism disclosed herein enables highly reliable marking.

Referring to FIG. 5, there is shown a second embodiment of the present invention suitable for marking a can at its bottom. As shown in FIG. 5, the high speed can conveyor line carries a plurality of cans 50 between supports 54 and 56.
After the cans are filled and sealed at the positions shown in FIG. 5, they are turned over so that the bottom faces upward. Here, as described above for the bottle, the cold liquid is introduced inside the can, causing water droplets to form on the outside of the can. As is well known in the art, such cans generally have a conically recessed bottom surface, designated 58 in the drawings.

In a typical code marking operation, the printhead is positioned vertically to mark a cone on the bottom of the can. For very accurate marking, it is necessary to dehydrate this surface. For this purpose, according to the invention, together with the air knife, a hood designed to collect the scattered liquid and discharge it from the marking area is provided. In particular, an air knife of the type described above is arranged at the position indicated by reference numeral 60. The air knife points in the direction of the conical surface 58 to be marked. The air knife is about 35 degrees and 4
It has a downward tilt angle D between 0 degrees. This allows the air to enter the conical concave portion, pass over substantially the entire surface thereof, and blow off water droplets. Due to this positioning of the air knife, air and liquid are conveyed from left to right as shown in FIG. 5 and the upper extension 64, the vertical extension 66 and the lower extension 68 are formed of metal forming members and have a unique shape. In the hood structure 62. The hood 62 captures the scattered liquid and discharges it to a drain or a liquid collecting cylinder. This hood has a function as a moisture collector,
It also has a function as a safety shield to protect workers from air or liquid during the dehydration process. Drain opening 7
0 is provided. Air knife 60 on top 64 of hood
It is desirable to provide an air line 72 for supplying air to the air.

While the preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes and modifications can be made in a wide variety of aspects without departing from the invention. Various features of the invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a typical beverage bottling conveyor showing the state of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial plan view showing a physical relationship between the marking device and the bottle according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a partial side view showing a relationship between a marking device and a container.

FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 4C are diagrams showing preferred positioning angles of the present invention that can maximize the effects of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a partial end view of a second embodiment of the present invention used to mark the bottom of a can.

6A and 6B are plan views of an air knife suitable for use with the present invention, respectively.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Inkjet unit 12 Bottle 14 Inkjet printhead 19 Bottle pad 20 Rails 22 and 24 Bracket 26 Air knife 62 Food

Continuation of front page (72) Inventor Robert E. Peterek, Lakewood, Illinois, USA 60046, Lakewood, 605 (56) References JP-A-54-85725 (JP, A) JP, U) (58) Field surveyed (Int. Cl. ⁶ , DB name) B41J 2/01

Claims (6)

(57) [Claims] 1. A device for removing liquid from a selected area of a container traveling on a moving conveyor marked by a drop marking device, comprising: a) a fine opening in communication with a common manifold; At least one nozzle having a housing defining a linear array; b) means for supplying super-atmospheric air to the manifold to produce a narrow strip of high-pressure air through the opening; Positioning means for positioning a nozzle along the conveyor upstream of the drop marking device, which optimizes the removal of liquid in a selected area to be marked, and that of high pressure air to other areas of the container. Positioning means for adjusting the angular direction in which the narrow strip of high-pressure air collides with the container so as to minimize collision. A device for removing liquid. 2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein at least two nozzles are used to remove the liquid. 3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said positioning means removes a liquid provided with a bracket to which each of said nozzles is mounted. 4. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said one or each nozzle comprises: d) between 59 and 64 degrees with respect to the longitudinal axis of the conveyor to direct air upstream. E) at an angle between 20 and 30 degrees from the horizontal, and f) said straight line so that the top of said straight array of openings is located upstream from the bottom of said array. Is rotated between 47 ° and 57 ° from the position where the lines connecting the openings of the array are vertical, so that the narrow strip of high pressure air exiting each nozzle moves the liquid down and away from the point at which the air impinges. For removing liquid positioned to shear and dry the area to make it suitable for marking. 5. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the container is a beverage can conveyed upside down for marking on its bottom, and further comprising a hood for catching liquid blown from the can. For removing the 6. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said nozzle removes liquid having an angle inclined between 35 and 40 degrees with respect to a horizontal plane.